Studsvik Signs Agreement to Manage Norway’s Spent Nuclear Fuel
On 16 October, Studsvik (ENS Corporate Member) signed an important agreement with Norwegian Nuclear Decommissioning (NND) to manage Norway’s legacy spent nuclear fuel.
This long-term agreement runs until 2055 and starts with a pre-study that will define the detailed project plan and budget, with the majority of the work to be conducted over the coming two decades.
Norway holds about 16.5 million tonnes of spent fuel from six decades of running nuclear research reactors, but much of it cannot be stored long-term or disposed of safely in its current form. The inventory holds metallic uranium fuel, aluminium-clad fuel, and experimental fuel.
Therefore, the agreement covers transport, treatment of waste to meet long-term storage requirements, and the interim storage of spent fuel from Norway’s former research reactors. More specifically, Studsvik will transport the fuel from Norway to its licensed facilities, inspect it, treat it, and store it until it can be returned to Norway.
The agreement builds on ten years of cooperation between Studsvik and the Norwegian nuclear sector, reflecting the necessity of safely managing spent fuel. It works towards creating a safe environment that allows Norway to manage its nuclear energy effectively over a long period of time.
The agreement includes a fixed annual fee covering project management, regulatory work, security and the reservation of storage capacity at Studsvik. It builds on more than ten years of cooperation between Studsvik and the Norwegian nuclear sector, including a 2021 contract with the Institute for Energy Technology (IFE) to treat metallic uranium fuel from the JEEP I reactor at Kjeller.
Read the full Studsvik Press Release
